Bowling alley board adjustor



March 14, 1967 r GILRQY ETAL 3,308,587

BOWLING ALLEY BOARD ADJUSTOR Filed Dec. '30, 1963 2 Sheets-Shet 1 FIG. 2

INVENTORS HOWARD L. GILROY WALTER J. LILLARD March 14, 1967 cj ETAL3,308,587

BOWLING ALLEY BOARD ADJUSTOR Filed D60. 30, 1963 v 2 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTORS HOWARD L. GILROY BYWALTER J. LILLARD United States Patent3,308,587 BOWLING ALLEY BOARD ADJUSTOR Howard L. Gilroy and Walter J.Lillard, Flint, Mich.,

assignors to G.L.C. Bowling Supplies, Inc., a corporation of MichiganFiled Dec. 30, 1963, Ser. No. 334,418 2 Claims. (Cl. 52126) Thisinvention rel-ates to method and "apparatus for leveling, adjustingelevation, and repairing worn or warped portions of the surface ofbowling alleys.

The surface of a bowling alley is subject to uneven wear by bowlingballs during play. Such wear results in the formation of depressions inthe surface of the alley which affect the course of the ball and arehence undesirable. Changes in temperature and humidity can also causewarping of the surface of the bowling alley, with a similar undesirableeffect.

It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide improved meansfor leveling a portion of the surface of a bowling alley.

Another object of the invention is to provide improved means foradjusting the elevation of a portion of the surface of a bowling alley.

A further object of the invention is to provide improved means forelevating a worn portion of a bowling alley to a level superior to thatof the alley proper, to facilitate repair thereof.

Still a further object of the invention is to provide an improved methodfor repairing worn portions of the surface of a bowling alley.

Broadly, the apparatus of the present invention comprises an externallythreaded sleeve adapted to be threadably embedded within a vertical borein a board of a bowling alley, a screw threadably engaged within saidsleeve, and a bearing cup adapted to rest upon a leveling strip belowsaid board and to receive the lower end of said screw. The method of thepresent invention comprises, broadly, drilling a bore downwardly intosaid board, dropping said bearing cup downwardly through said bore torest upon said leveling strip, screwing said sleeve downwardly into saidboard completely below the upper surface of the board, and then screwingsaid screw downwardly within said sleeve and against said bearing cup toraise the upper surface of said board to an elevation superior to thatof the alley proper. A hardwood plug is then inserted into said bore insaid board, and the portion of the bowling alley th-us elevated issanded to the level of the alley proper and is varnished.

The above and other objects of the invention which will later becomeapparent as the following description proceeds, are attained by thepresent invention, a preferred embodiment of which has been illustrated,by way of example only, in the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification in which like characters are employed to designatelike parts throughout the same, and wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a bowling alley adjustor with lockingscrew removed.

FIGURE 2 is a vertical section of a bowling alley adjustor operativelyemployed to elevate a portion of a bowling alley.

FIGURE 3 is a cross-section of a bowling alley, showing a depressed areaworn in the surface thereon.

FIGURE 4 is a cross-section of a bowling alley showing a worn portionthereof elevated to a level superior to that of the alley proper.

FIGURE 5 is a cross-section of a bowling alley showing a previously wornportion thereof after repair.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, a conventional bowlingalley is formed by a plurality of elongated, interconnected tongue andgroove hardwood 3,308,587 Patented Mar. 14, 1967 boards 10 havinggutters 12 along the sides of the array. Board-s 10 rest upon a one-halfinch thick layer of Celo-tex 14 or similar material which cover aplurality of transversely arranged leveling strips 16 formed from commontwo inch by four inch lumber. Leveling strips 16 are supported by aplurality of wooden stringers 18 which, in turn, rest upon a concreteslab 20.

While the particular materials and construction may vary considerablyfrom one bowling alley to another, the construction of all bowlingalleys are similar in their provision of boards and of leveling stripswhich support the boards from below. Repeated use of the bowling alleyresults in wear of the surface of boards 10, creating depressions, suchas that shown at 22 in FIGURE 3, in portions thereof.

We form from steel or other metal a sleeve, .generally indicated at 2-4,of a height less than that of boards 10, I

bearing external threads 26 preferably standard inch- 11, and having aslot 28 in the upper end thereof and an internally threaded bore 30extending longitudinally therethrough. A headless steel screw 32 isprovided, and bears conventional recessed gripping and turning means atthe upper end thereof, such as an hexagonal socket 34, external threads36 adapted for engagement with threaded bore 30, and preferably abeveled lower end 38, A metal bearing cup 40, preferably formed ofsteel, is also provided, and bears a recess 42 drilled into the topthereof. The outside diameter of bearing cap 40 is slightly less thanthe minor diameter of external threads 26 of sleeve 24 and preferably of/2 inch, and the inside diameter of recess 42 is slightly greater thanthe major diameter of threads 36 of screw 32. A short headless lockingscrew 44, also adapted for engagement with treaded bore 30 and bearinggripping and turning means, such as an hexagonal socket 46 identical tosocket 34, is also provided.

To repair depression 22, a vertical bore 48, having a diameter equal tothe minor diameter of external threads 26 of sleeve 24 and preferably of/2 inch, is drilled downwardly through every third or fourth board 10within the depressed area, to the layer of Celotex 14 resting upon aleveling strip 16 therebelow. A counterbore 49, approximately inch indiameter, is then drilled into the upper end of each bore 48. Each bore48 is then threaded, by a conventional steel tap, to receive threads 26of sleeve 24. A bearing cup 40 is then dropped downwardly into each bore48, to rest atop leveling strip 16 with its recess 42 facing upwardly.

A sleeve 24 is then coated with an epoxy resin glue and screweddownwardly into each bore 48, respectively, slot 28 being utilized toreceive the blade of a screwdriver or similar tool for such purpose,until the upper end of the sleeve is substantially below the uppersurface of board 10. A screw 32 is then threadably engaged within bore30 of each sleeve 32, respective-1y, if not already so engaged, andscrewed downwardly therein until lower end 38 thereof is seated withinrecess 42 of the bearing cup 40 therebelow, suitable means, such as ahex wrench, being engaged with socket 34 of the screw for such purpose.

Further rotation of each screw 32 then compresses Celotex 14 againstleveling strip 16 and forces each sleeve 24 upwardly, away from hearingcup 40 and the leveling strip, thus elevating the sleeve and board 10 inwhich it is embedded. Since each board 16 is interlocked with theadjacent boards by tongue and groove construction, glue, screws, orsimilar means, such boards adjacent to those in which sleeves 24 areembedded are also elevated or deformed upwardly during the process,thereby arching upwardly all of boards 16 within the depressed area, asbest shown in FIGURE 4.

When the entire upper surface of area 22 has been thus raised to anelevation superior to that of the surface of the bowling alley proper, alocking screw 44 is screwed downwardly into the bore 30 of each sleeve24 and wedged tightly against the top of screw 32 therein, thus firmlylocking screws 32 in place within sleeves 24.

A hardwood plug 50 is then driven and glued into the upper end of eachbore 48, atop sleeve 24 therein. Area 22 is then sanded down preciselyto the level of that of the bowling alley proper, and varnish or asimilar conventional protective coating is applied thereto. The surfaceof the bowling alley is thus quickly, easily, and economically repairedand restored to level.

Should it be necessary to repair the same area of the bowling alleyagain, plugs 50 may be removed by drilling, locking screws 44 unscrewedfrom bores 30, and the heads of screws 32 thus exposed. Screws 32 maythen be screwed further downward within sleeves 24 until boards havebeen further elevated to the new desired elevation, whereupon lockingscrews 44 and new plugs 50 may be again inserted and area 22 againsanded and refinished in the same manner as heretofore described.

While we have shown and described our invention primarily as used toelevate and repair a depression in the surface of a bowling alley, itmay with equal facility and result he used to raise the level orstraighten warped portions of the surface of a bowling alley and tolower the elevation of portions thereof which have been previously soraised but which have subsequently heaved upwardly. Further, theinvention is not limited to use with bowling alleys but may be used withany other game boards which lend themselves to the method and apparatusherein described and claimed.

It is still further to be understood that the form of the inventionherewith shown and described is to be taken as a preferred embodiment ofthe same and that resort may be had to various changes in constructionwithout departing from the scope of the su'hjoined claims.

What is claimed is:

-1. In combination with a bowling alley board and a leveling stripsupporting said board from below, an externally threaded sleeve having atransverse slot in the upper end thereof and adapted to be embeddedcompletely within said board by threadable engagement with a verticalbore extending through said board, an internally threaded longitudinalbore extending downwardly through said sleeve, a bearing cup having anupwardly disposed recess therein, and adapted for insertion into saidbore in said board and to be supported by said leveling strip, a firstscrew arranged for adjustable, threaded engagement with said threadedbore of said sleeve, the lower end of said first screw being receivedwithin said recess in said bearing cup and the upper end of said firstscrew being disposed below the upper end of said sleeve when said lowerend of said first screw extends below the lower end of said sleeve,means for gripping and rotating said screw to force and maintain saidsleeve and board upwardly from and in spaced relationship with saidbearing cup and leveling strip, a locking screw adapted for threadableengagement within said threaded bore of said sleeve above said firstscrew and disposed to contact, and to be wedged against the upper end ofsaid first screw to restrain said first screw against rotation, andmeans for gripping and rotating said locking screw.

2. The method of repairing a worn portion of the surface of a bowlingalley supported by support means comprising, drilling a vertical boredownwardly through at least one of the boards of said alley, droppingbearing means downwardly through said bore to rest upon said supportmeans, threadably engaging an externally threaded sleeve within saidbore from above, screwing a screw downwardly through a threaded borewithin said sleeve and against said bearing means to force said boardupwardly from said support means until the upper surface thereof isabove the level of that of the bowling alley proper, inserting a pluginto the top of said bore in said board, and sanding the upper surfaceof said board and plug down to the desired elevation.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,447,448 3/1923Walch 1 1,753,154 4/1930 Martus 85l 2,483,976 10/1949 Hughes 273 512,574,677 11/1951 Wieland 85l 2,922,455 1/ 1960 Braendel 15141.73,111,723 11/1963 Bates 52-122 3,211,454 10/1965 Bailey 273 51 FOREIGNPATENTS 1,074,251 1960 Germany.

470,815 1952 Italy.

FRANK L. ABBOTT, Primary Examiner. R. A. STENZEL, Assistant Examiner.

1. IN COMBINATION WITH A BOWLING ALLEY BOARD AND A LEVELING STRIPSUPPORTING SAID BOARD FROM BELOW, AN EXTERNALLY THREADED SLEEVE HAVING ATRANSVERSE SLOT IN THE UPPER END THEREOF AND ADAPTED TO BE EMBEDDEDCOMPLETELY WITHIN SAID BOARD BY THREADABLE ENGAGEMENT WITH A VERTICALBORE EXTENDING THROUGH SAID BOARD, AN INTERNALLY THREADED LONGITUDINALBORE EXTENDING DOWNWARDLY THROUGH SAID SLEEVE, A BEARING CUP HAVING ANUPWARDLY DISPOSED RECESS THEREIN, AND ADAPTED FOR INSERTION INTO SAIDBORE IN SAID BOARD AND TO BE SUPPORTED BY SAID LEVELING STRIP, A FIRSTSCREW ARRANGED FOR ADJUSTABLE, THREADED ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID THREADEDBORE OF SAID SLEEVE, THE LOWER END OF SAID FIRST SCREW BEING RECEIVEDWITHIN SAID RECESS IN SAID BEARING CUP AND THE UPPER END OF SAID FIRSTSCREW BEING DISPOSED BELOW THE UPPER END OF SAID SLEEVE WHEN SAID LOWEREND OF SAID FIRST SCREW EXTENDS BELOW THE LOWER END OF SAID SLEEVE,MEANS FOR GRIPPING AND ROTATING SAID SCREW TO FORCE AND MAINTAIN SAIDSLEEVE AND BOARD UPWARDLY FROM AND IN SPACED RELATIONSHIP WITH SAIDBEARING CUP AND LEVELING STRIP, A LOCKING SCREW ADAPTED FOR THREADABLEENGAGEMENT WITHIN SAID THREADED BORE OF SAID SLEEVE ABOVE